How to find a therapist

Most adults and children with ADHD receive all of their professional care and advice via the NHS. Some people choose the private route because:

as with every medical specialty, there are heavy demands upon ADHD services and waiting lists for assessment are often lengthy.

some parents feel unhappy with the conventional medical approach to ADHD and prefer to seek alternative (sometimes called complementary) treatments.

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Be careful with the word therapist

For ADHD, the term 'therapist' within the NHS will generally mean a clinical psychologist. Having treatment on the NHS means only properly qualified personnel will see and treat patients.

Clinical psychologists undergo lengthy professional training, but the terms 'therapist' and 'counsellor' are not protected.

This means they can legitimately be used by anyone, whether or not they have any qualifications - a brief search on the Internet or in the phone book will reveal many therapists who claim they can treat ADHD.

There are competent and well-qualified therapists working privately, but finding them and checking their qualifications is not straightforward.

Tips for finding a therapist

1. Start with your GP

A helpful first line of enquiry can be the secretary of your local clinical psychology service - your GP can tell you where he or she sends referrals.

The secretary will know if any of the psychologists or other professionals in the team take on private work.

Failing that, the secretary or the psychologist may know of private therapists that they can recommend - although they may not be local.

2. Contact your local support group

Your local ADHD support group will be a good source of word-of-mouth recommendation.

If you're not sure how to get in contact with your local support group, try contacting one of the groups in our directory.

3. Check credentials

Once you've got the details of some professionals who offer therapy, the next step is to check their credentials.

If you're going to see privately a therapist who already holds an NHS post, you can be assured of their professional credentials.

A good personal recommendation of someone outside the NHS should be backed up by a bit of extra homework:

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If the therapist is a member of one of the main professional organisations listed below, you should check it either directly with the therapist or via the organisation's lists.

If a therapist is not a member of a recognised body, you should think twice about using them - no matter how good someone says they are.

As with most professional organisations, being a member does not guarantee the person is good at the job, but it's likely they are competent.

4. Consider the fees

Fees for professional private therapy vary enormously.

You're unlikely to find anything costing less than £25 per hour, and you might encounter much larger fees. Top psychologists in Harley Street, for example, tend to charge between £90 and £150 per hour.

Most people should be able to find therapy from a qualified practitioner for around £40-50 per hour.

These costs mean seeing a private therapist is not something to embark on lightly - especially when the responsibility of finding someone up to the job is yours.

Before the appointment

Most of the first meeting(s) will be about the therapist gathering information that is useful in deciding the right type of treatment. Listed below are some of the areas a therapist will ask about.

Questions for therapy

After the initial meeting, you'll probably have a number of things you want to ask the therapist, eg:

How long do you expect my child to be in therapy?

Will we be expected to do work between sessions?

Will there be some kind of appraisal in a few weeks?

How often are the sessions?

What notice do you need for cancelling a session?

Background information on the family, parents, siblings and schooling.

Developmental history: information on your child's early years, such as eating and sleeping behaviour, whether you had concerns about your child's development, how he coped with nursery, etc.

Specific difficulties such as your child's relationship with you and whether it changes with siblings, other children or adults. You may be asked about what happens at mealtimes, dressing or when watching TV, having visitors or visiting places.

Parental opinion: you are likely to have your own ideas and worries about your child's behaviour, the effect it's having on your family and what can be done. This will help the psychologist make sure you get enough advice so you can cope with any changes that are needed.

Professional organisations

Many of the reputable organisations now have websites where you can find a list of therapists in your area.

These organisations are also useful if you have any complaint to make about one of their therapists or if you're having doubts about the methods used in your treatment.

United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy. This has become an umbrella organisation for many different psychotherapeutic groups. Tel: 0207 436 3002. Website: www.psychotherapy.org.uk.

British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy. Tel: 0870 4435252.

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